Council shows commitment to Enterprise@BognorRegis

Arun District Council, with its partners, is proving its commitment to attracting new businesses to the area and creating thousands of much needed jobs.

At a meeting on January 17, the Enterprise@Bognor Regis Working Group instructed consultants to speak to landowners and explore creative ways in which to deliver the aspirations of the original enterprise zone proposals.

The Working Group was formed after the town's initial bid to create an enterprise zone north of urban Bognor was unsuccessful last year. Ministers were looking to create 21 designated zones where businesses could have access to things like simpler planning rules and super-fast broadband so they could thrive and stimulate growth.

Enterprise@Bognor Regis is made up of representatives from Arun District Council, the Bognor Regis Regeneration Board, West Sussex County Council, the Coastal West Sussex Partnership and the University of Chichester. 

Together, the group is determined to deliver the aims of the original enterprise zone proposal by promoting enterprise on 82.5 hectares of undeveloped land, attracting 165 new businesses by 2015, along with 2,200 jobs. Beyond that it is hoped that there will also be space for a further 5,300 local jobs.

Leader of Arun District Council Councillor Gillian Brown said: "These plans are hugely ambitious, and rightly so. The fact partners are still fully committed to moving them forward is extremely positive for Bognor Regis and the surrounding area. It shows the Council is committed to growing local business and keeping local people in jobs, despite the disappointment of having the original bid rejected."

Consultants acting on behalf of Enterprise@Bognor Regis are now speaking to landowners on the sites originally proposed. These are: Oldlands Farm on the A29, the former Lec airfield and land to its north and Salt Box. The work is expected to be complete by April 2012. Meanwhile, the Working Group is exploring funding solutions and emerging government funding.

Councillor Norman Dingemans, Cabinet Member for Economic and Cultural Development, added: "It is vital that we push ahead with Enterprise@Bognor Regis. New businesses and jobs are much needed in this area and I am delighted to be able to show that we're doing our utmost to deliver them."